Cannes Flashback: In 2004, Tom Hanks Fascinated and Armed the Press

The official Cannes press conference is a complex festive ritual, a veritable minefield where the issues range from invariably vague to strangely bizarre.

Such was the case with Tom Hanks during his first visit to Cannes in 2004. Star, who will return this year for the world premiere of Baz Luhrmann on May 25th. ElvisIn which he plays Presley’s manager, Colonel Tom Parker, who is vying for the Cohen Brothers title. Ladies. Many in the media were skeptical of the film, as it was a remake of Alexander McEndrick’s 1955 classic Ealing Studios, starring Alec Guinness as the hapless leader of a criminal gang who played a string quartet and rented rooms to an owner. widower. The remake moved the action to Mississippi, where Hanks appeared as a verbal classics teacher on Saturday.

Hanks acknowledged the original: “I’ve never seen it,” but avoided raising his eyebrows, adding, “I didn’t mean to [it] It gets into my head and scolds me or inadvertently imitates Sir Alec Guinness. There’s a reason he’s Sir Alec Guinness. I wanted to remain ignorant and as unforgettable as possible.”

Joel Cohen, heads-up expert – Ladies This was the seventh title he and brother Ethan brought to the festival, adding: “We loved the original film. We actually stole a line from him for our first movie, blood is simple.” (Ethan returned this year with his first solo directorial job, Dr. Jerry Lee Lewis: Troubles in the Mind.) “We like the skeleton of the story. … We thought he would survive our attack with him.

Before the press conference ended, the journalist stood up and unfurled a 1989 police comedy poster of his friends. Turner and Hooch – which led Hanks to mate with a large hermit dog – and ask for an autograph. “I don’t remember that movie,” joked the actor as an unsuspecting reporter pressed, “Was it a comedy?”

“I think it’s still being discussed in theaters around the world,” said Hanks, who was devouring the assembled reporters at the time.